NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, the top pick in the 2018 NBA draft, has been suspended 25 games after testing positive for a banned diuretic, the league said Thursday.
The brief statement from the NBA did not detail when Ayton tested positive but said his suspension would begin with Friday’s game against the Denver Nuggets.
ESPN, citing league sources, reported that the NBA Players Association plans to file arbitration papers in the belief that there is a case to have the penalty reduced or rescinded based on their collective bargaining agreement’s provision of “unintentional ingestion.”
Ayton, a 21-year-old from the Bahamas, averaged 16.3 points and 10.3 rebounds as a rookie.
He had 18 points and 11 rebounds on Wednesday in the Suns’ season-opening home victory over the Sacramento Kings.
© Agence France-Presse
